Victory May Be Unattainable
by shadowxofxdarkness
Summary: Cori travels with her family to see a battlefield and take pictures, but her trip sends her to a different time on the battlefield. Her personality clashes against a certain Colonel's, but the man might have met his match when he met her. Cori will not back down in this unknown time and societal expectations for women.
1. Chapter 1

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, and their grandparents.

Story Start

"Cori, get up, it's time to go on the tour," Brandon whined as he shook his sister's shoulder. His patience level for a nine year old was not high at all. His eighteen-year-old sister sleeping away in the backseat of the car was not helping either. Their grandparents were already outside buying tickets for the four of them. He narrowed his hazel eyes before he pinched his sister's arm.

"Brandon, don't pinch your sister," his grandma scolded him before telling him to get out of the car. "It's not nice to do that. You wouldn't want your sister to do that to you now would you?" his grandma continued while his grandpa walked over to the backseat where Cori was starting to wake up.

"No, because she's trained in martial arts since she was little and it'll hurt if she pinches me," Brandon said. He grabbed his grandma's hand before pulling her towards the tour group.

"We're in South Carolina, sleepyhead," Cori's grandpa said softly with a chuckle as her dark grey eyes met his. Her dark red hair framed her face before flowing past her shoulders. "If you don't wake up now, you'll miss the tour," he said as she wiped the sleep out of her eyes.

"I'm awake, Papaw," Cori said softly. She unbuckled and got out of the car. Her grandpa shut the door behind her, and then he locked the doors. "So where are we again specifically?" she asked while straightening her black blazer, red t-shirt, and her khaki skinny jeans. Her black boots caught the sunlight as she focused on her attire.

"We're at one of the battlegrounds for the revolutionary war. There used to be houses all along this area, which you can guess were ransacked by soldiers or burned down by soldiers," her grandfather explained as they walked together to catch up to the rest of the tour group.

"Brandon is excited," Cori said with a smile as she watched her brother's eyes shine with wonder. The soft breeze blew his hair and the sun's rays made him squint. However, nothing could deter him from experiencing everything this tour had to offer.

The vacation was a fun historical trip for Brandon, who could never get enough of history, especially the Revolutionary War. Cori just came on the trip as a fun little graduation trip from high school. She and her brother lived with their grandparents. They have lived with their grandparents for five years after their parents lost their lives in a plane crash. Brandon did not miss their parents too much because he was so young during their death, but Cori missed them every now and then. The pain of loss had withered throughout the years.

"Cori, papaw, get up here, you're missing the best parts," Brandon said and waved them closer to him while their grandma laughed quietly behind her hand.

"We are? Well then I guess we'd better hurry up," Cori said in a surprised manner, which made her brother's smile grow.

"You're bored to tears aren't you?" her grandma whispered to her when they joined the large tour group.

"It's a beautiful place, but yeah, I'm bored, but this trip is about Brandon, not me," Cori whispered back. She made sure to turn away before she saw her grandma's sad expression. She had grown up a lot after her parents' death. She also did not allow herself to have too much fun. She had college to worry about, her brother staying a kid for as long as he could, and helping her grandparents out as much as she could. Her grandparents were great people, but after retiring, they did not have enough money to take care of two children, their house, and everything else.

"Mamaw, I'm hungry," Brandon said after they had been walking through the battlegrounds for a few hours. The sun was starting to descend in the horizon. The tour had ended two hours ago, but Brandon wanted to run around more and take pictures. He took so many pictures before he grew bored, and then he told Cori to take more pictures. He wanted to make a new collage for his picture wall in his room.

"All right, well let's head back to the car and we'll get you some dinner," his grandma said. She was about to walk to the car, but Brandon would not move. He was staring at Cori.

"What's wrong?" Cori asked her little brother as she squatted down to be eye level with him.

"Will you go take some pictures of the entire battleground from the top of that hill?" Brandon asked giving his puppy dog pout, and the tired droop to his eyes made it even cuter.

"Brandon, I don't think that's a good idea, it'll be dark soon," their grandpa said, but Brandon just would not move until Cori gently took the camera from his grip.

"I'll be fine. You guys head back to the car and I'll be there as soon as I'm done, but Brandon you owe me some French fries from your dinner in a little while," Cori said and poked her brother's nose, which made him giggle.

"Deal," Brandon said before ran towards the car with their grandma following him.

"Be careful," their grandpa said to Cori before walking towards the car as well.

"It's just a small hill, I'll be fine," Cori thought as she walked towards the hill closest to her. She had her cell phone with her in case she needed some type of flashlight. She pulled her blazer tighter together as the breeze rushed past her. The chill of the night was arriving sooner than she thought it would.

Once reaching the top of the hill, she took a few pictures of the field. All of the pictures were turning out all right until she saw some type of blur rush past. She stopped taking pictures to check the film database. Her brows furrowed when she saw a large blur on one of the pictures.

"It looks almost like smoke," she whispered before lifting her camera to take another picture. The wind started to pick up as she took another picture. Her breath caught in her throat when she even smelled smoke now. The picture blew her mind though when she saw flashes of red, grey, and blue appear amongst the new multiple splotches of black on each picture she took.

"What's going on?" she thought fearfully as the wind brought sounds of horses neighing in fright, gun shots sounding, large thumps pounding across the ground, and trees splintering. She looked all around her, but she did not see anything. Coughs choked her as the smoke smell started to become too much.

"This is crazy," she thought before stumbling down the hill. She just needed to get back to the car. She must be hallucinating because of all of the stress lately and lack of sleep. "This cannot be real," she screamed when a quick rush of air ran past her and she thought she even heard the sound of a horse's deep breathing and the sound of its powerful legs racing across the ground beside her. Shouts of men whether full of pain or adrenaline echoed around her and in her head, and her world started spinning as the smoke inhalation was becoming too much.

A faint cry on the wind of "Charge" was the last thing she heard before her mind delved into darkness and she knew no more.

"Oh my head," Cori thought as she slowly sat up. Her body felt dizzy and her throat felt raw. A cough escaped her and that started the fit that felt as if it would not quit. Thirst was her first priority until she noticed the area she had been lying in for who knows how long. Trees surrounded her. A beautiful night sky made her gasp as she caught sight of it through the tree canopy. She had never seen so many stars in her life, and she had always seen more than most because she lived far away from any cities. However, the stars decorating the sky almost left no room for the night sky to show.

As she stood up trying to get her bearings, she could see a small field, which was much smaller than the field from the battleground tour area. "Somebody must have moved me as a joke, one of the park rangers," she whispered trying to reason with herself.

Shaky steps led her to the tree line, but she paused at what she found in the field. Houses from the revolutionary era style were spaced throughout the field and beyond. Her eyes flickered from house to house, but she did not see any power lines, telephone poles, satellite dishes, or a vehicle.

"This field used to full of houses before the battle that took place here," her grandpa's words floated to the surface of her mind as she stared at the unbelievable.


	2. Chapter 2

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, and their grandparents.

Story Start

"Maybe, maybe they are just models and we did not notice them before," she whispered as she slowly walked towards one of the houses. Dim lights were on inside the house. She could see the faint glows from the windows without curtains. She crept to the nearest window, which she saw a living room and a small fire going in the fireplace.

"Just a really good model," she thought before noise sounded in the house. The noise was boots hitting the wood floor. She crouched lower so she could see through the window, but hopefully, the person could not see her. "Why would anybody be in a model, and why there are no bars on the window like at other historical house models?" she thought, but attention drifted back to the boot falls when she saw a man enter the living room.

He was wearing what you would expect a man from the 1700 era to wear. He was wearing pants with no zippers that she could see, a white shirt that had maybe one or two buttons at the top, and old fashioned suspenders. His boots were heavy and uncomfortable looking. Her old time fashion ended when the man glared at the window. She froze praying to any god that would listen that she would not be seen.

"Honey, it's all right, there are no Redcoats out there. They are not even near our parts," a woman's voice said soothingly as she entered the living room. Her dress and hoop skirt made Cori want to faint.

"There is no way that the rangers would dress up in old timey clothes and stay in the model homes, which do not even have bars. Redcoats, 'near our parts,' there is no way I'm in the 21st century," Cori thought as she started walking slowly to the woods. She tried to stay near the shadows or out of sight of the window as much as she could.

"Daddy, red, there is somebody wearing red outside. Is it a redcoat? Daddy, I'm frightened," a young girl's voice shrieked from an upstairs window. Cori's heart dropped before she took off running into the surrounding forest. She had no sense of direction except to run away from a man, who was now yelling about redcoats and his shotgun.

"How did this happen?" she thought before screaming as a bullet lodged into a nearby tree, shattering the bark upon impact. "Run faster," she urged her legs, which thankfully were muscled thanks to all of the martial arts training ever since she was little. She did not know how much her training would help in a situation where men determine everything by guns or money, but she would try her best in a male dominated time. She had no idea if she would ever even get to return to her own time.

"Stay away from my family, you damn redcoats," the man yelled as loud as he could, and Cori kept running as fast as she could. She was even cursing that she wore the color red today even if it was just her shirt, which was mostly hidden by her blazer.

"That girl had the eyes of a hawk," she muttered out of breath as she finally allowed herself to stop running. She had somehow reached a dirt road, which in a way made her feel less safe than before. If she really was in the time of the revolutionary war, then all wars had bandits lying in wait to ambush people making their way down the road.

"Well what do I have?" she asked herself to give her some noise to keep her calm. She emptied her pockets only to see her cell phone, some quarters, and a hair tie. With a sigh and to keep her hands busy, she used the hair tie to pull her hair back into a high ponytail. She wanted her hair out of her way in case she had to run for her life again.

"Well until the battery dies I can use the cell phone as a flashlight if it gets too dark, and I can always throw quarters just to distract, and I have my own training," she whispered while walking down the road in the opposite direction from where she had seen the houses, which she remembered the road led to eventually.

A few more coughs left her because the run aggravated her already irritated throat from the smoke. She would hug somebody if she could just find water, and she never hugged people besides her family. She was not a touchy feely person, and she never really had been. She kept walking for what seemed like hours but she knew she had only walked a few miles. The night sky was still shining above her.

The night was actually quieter than she was used to back in her own time. There were always the sounds of her grandpa's westerns on the television, her grandma reading Brandon a bedtime story, and soft piano music playing in her own room to help her sleep. She was missing the soft music because in this situation it would help calm her nerves.

A small sound like thunder made her pause. The thunder grew louder until she distinctly recognized the sound of multiple horses running down the road. She ran into the nearby forest to hide to see what was going to happen or who was going to ride by her hiding place. The horses drew closer and she could see flashes of dark colors. She held her breath and tried to hide her red shirt as much as she could.

"He said the redcoat went this way, but I don't see anything," one of the men on horseback grumbled before spitting out chewing tobacco.

"I don't see anything," another man said.

"If you're so ready to mess with the redcoats than join the rebels," a man snapped in a tired tone. "I should be at home with my family not looking for trouble with you fools," he continued and Cori hoped that this man would lead the others away from her. She knew she needed to run but she was not sure she could get away without making any noise.

"Are you a damn Tory?" the tobacco chewing man shouted.

"I'm with whoever wins so my family will be safe," the tired man countered before the sound of gunfire filled the air.

Cori almost shrieked in fright as the guns sounded on the opposite side of the road in a cotton field. She tried to hide behind the tree as much as she could. Bullets whizzed past her, but the thuds of men falling off their horses let her know where the other bullets went. Frightened horses bucked or ran away. One dead man was hanging onto the saddle of one of the horses that was trying to be free of the corpse.

"Cease fire," an authoritative British voice rang through the neighs of the frantic horses. "Catch the horses, they will be of use to his majesty's army, search the area as well in case there are others hiding," the voice rang out again and Cori dared to peak around the tree to see twenty British soldiers on horseback. Their red uniforms glowed in the light of the moon and stars. Her heart stopped when she saw some of them dismounting.

"Move, I have to move now," she thought even as her legs felt as if they were cemented to the forest floor. "Now," she screamed in her mind. She shoved away from the tree to make herself go before running through the forest as fast as she could. Her boots did not make much noise as she watched where she was running. The horses were still neighing or snorting in the background so she had some cover.

Boots marching into the forest filled her ears as she kept running. The horses were now calmed down and tied to the bridle of the soldiers' horses. Her heart was beating harshly in her chest as the fear of being caught and possibly killed ran through her mind. History was not her forte, but she wished she had studied it more. Historical knowledge might come in handy, but she knew that her being seen dressed in male type clothing would hurt her.

"Lieutenant, we heard something ahead," a male voice yelled before shots were fired. A curse left Cori's lips as one of the bullets grazed her left thigh. Her footing stumbled but she kept running as the sounds of shrubbery and the soldiers forced through branches. "I see him," another soldier yelled and Cori's heart dropped.

"If they really think I'm a male they will kill me without questions asked," she thought while trying to pick up speed. Her mind was battling with her about if she should just stop now and give herself up or just keep running. The blood that was being forced out with her pounding heartbeat was soaking the left leg of her jeans.

"Stop," one of the soldiers behind her ordered as another shot flew past her, this time her right arm was grazed. Thanks to all of her clothes, it did not bleed as much as the leg wound had at first.

"Lieutenant," another soldier yelled before the sound of a horse chasing her caught her attention. Running faster was not even an option as a red uniformed arm reached down and grabbed her around her waist. Her eyes widened as she sat atop a horse with a strange man, and she was staring down the barrel of a pistol.


	3. Chapter 3

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, and their grandparents.

Story Start

"Cease fire, I caught him," the Lieutenant ordered as his dark brown eyes stared at Cori harshly. A cold sweat broke out across her neck at the gun still staring her down as well. "Or have I made a mistake," the man said before grabbing Cori's chin with his free hand. The horse stayed still underneath them as the man tilted her head up. "A woman in man's clothes, suspicious," he said and the chills grew in her body.

"Lieutenant, what are our orders?" a soldier asked from the ground beside the horse. Cori dared not look away from the man that still held her chin.

"We will return to the fort. I have a prisoner that needs to be interrogated properly," the Lieutenant said cynically before raising the pistol above Cori's head.

Cori's mind slowed down when she saw the man raise the pistol above her head. She acted quickly and hit the man in the throat. She hit him in the gut before twisting his wrist to make him drop the pistol. She pulled her legs up close to her chest before kicking the man with enough force to send him to the ground. She spun around in the saddle, grabbed the reins, and rode in a direction away from the soldiers.

Shouts of outrage, surprise, and some gunshots sounded behind her, but she just kept urging the horse forward. The horse gave a few unhappy snorts but she talked calmly to it to try to calm the animal. She did not need any broken bones added to her injury list. Her jean leg was now stained with blood and she was feeling lightheaded. The blood from her arm wound was slowly trickling down her skin and soaking into her blazer.

"Just have to get enough distance between us and then you can go where you want to," she whispered to the horse as she gripped the reins as tight as she could to stay on the horse. The dizziness was getting worse. A shiver raced through her as she heard the thunder of horses chasing her.

Her eyes scanned the area for anything to hide her or she could use for escape. A large tree was the only thing she could see for any help in this situation. She let go of the reins, hit the horse's backside, and then jumped off the animal. The horse kept running as she hoped. She rushed to get to her feet and to the tree. The branches were just low enough for her to wrap her arms around them and pull herself up so she could keep climbing. She climbed up the tree as fast as she could. She barely made it into the cover of the higher branches and leaves before the soldiers rushed through the area.

A sigh of relief left her as they rode past the tree without giving it a glance. She waited a few more minutes to make sure the coast was clear. After not seeing any more soldiers or hearing hooves, she slipped off her blazer and then her red t-shirt. She had to work quickly before she passed out from blood loss. She ripped her shirt into strands and tied a makeshift bandage around her arm. With pressure, the cut would stop bleeding in a little bit.

She put her blazer back on and buttoned it so it would still give her some modesty. Thankfully, the buttons went up high enough to cover her chest. She cautiously slipped her pants down so she could see the damage to her leg. A hiss left her when the denim was pulled away from the wound. She used one of the shirt strips to wipe away some of the blood so she could judge the damage. It was deep but not deep enough for stitches.

"Thank goodness for that," she whispered to herself to try to calm her down. She was uncomfortable being alone in the middle of nowhere, and the earlier events were not helping her heart rate stay normal. She wrapped a few of the shirt strips around the leg wound and gently eased her pants back to her hips. She stuffed the remaining shirt strands into her pants pocket for later if she needed to change the bandages.

"Now the question is if I should get down from here and keep walking or just rest here for the night. I can probably figure stuff out better in the day time," Cori contemplated while snuggling with her blazer to get warm. "Wait until morning," she grumbled before falling asleep on the branch.

"Aunt Charlotte, Aunt Charlotte, somebody is in that tree," a boy's voice yelled as Cori's morning wake up call.

"Samuel, don't be silly," a woman's voice called in reply.

Cori shook her hair out of her face and she slowly opened her to get them used to the sunshine. She looked around her and remembered that she had slept in a tree, which explained the random body aches in her neck and back. She looked down to see a young boy staring up at her. She could see wariness in his eyes and the way his lips were tight together.

"I'm not being silly, somebody is up there and that person is staring at me," the boy, Samuel yelled again before grabbing a rock. Cori yelped and ducked so the rock would fly over her head instead of into her nose.

"Hey, stop that, I'm not a bad person," Cori yelled as she dodged another flying projectile intended to hit her forehead.

"How can I trust you? Anyways, you're the weirdest looking man I've ever seen," Samuel yelled up ignoring his Aunt's calls to get away from the tree.

"I'm not a man, I'm a woman," Cori snapped as she was struggling to get down the tree branches with her injured leg, which felt numb from being pushed to its limit last night.

"Why are you wearing men's clothes then?" the boy questioned as he backed away from the tree, and his Aunt was now approaching him cautiously as she stared up at the tree.

"It's easier to run in this stuff than a dress. British soldiers were chasing me last night so I hid in the tree," Cori kept explaining until she reached the ground. Her left leg gave out on her for a second, but she shifted her body weight to her right leg.

"Oh dear, you're injured," the woman Cori guessed was Aunt Charlotte said with shock. Her blonde curls shined in the sunlight as her gentle eyes took in Cori's appearance. Cori's hair was a mess as if a bird had made it an actual nest last night. Her skin was even paler than normal because of her injuries.

"You didn't lead them here, did you?" Samuel questioned Cori even though his aunt had rushed over to grab the young woman's arm.

"I don't know where they went after I hid in the tree," Cori answered before she accepted the help from the boy's aunt.

"My name is Charlotte, what is your name?" Aunt Charlotte asked while leading the young woman to her home.

"Cori, thank you, I'm sorry for the trouble," Cori answered as she took in the house and the young children that were standing in front of the house enjoying the day.

"It's no trouble, but what about your family?" the older woman asked. She helped Cori enter the house and make her way to a chair in the living room.

"We were separated when the soldiers were chasing us. I don't know where they are, and I don't know where to look either," Cori tried to lie hoping that she would be believed.

"Just stay positive, maybe you will meet them again one day," Charlotte said giving Cori's hands a pat. "Now let's clean your wounds and get you into some clean clothes," she continued motioning for the boys to get away from the living room. They had been standing in the doorway watching the scene warily.

"Thank you so much, I don't know how to repay you," Cori said politely. She only received a smile and Charlotte helped her to a bedroom for privacy. One of the servants entered the bedroom to help her clean and properly wrap the wounds. Cori felt rage tear through her at the sight of the servant. "It's not right," she thought staring from Charlotte to the servant.

The kind African American woman helped Cori get out of her blazer while Charlotte watched with curious eyes. Cori thanked the nice woman before looking at Charlotte. "Can I have some privacy? I'm sorry, but I'm not comfortable around a lot of people while undressed," she said softly and Charlotte chuckled.

"Of course, but Mary will stay here with you to help," Charlotte said and gave Mary a look before disappearing to go back to the children probably. Cori let out a sigh of relief before shutting the door. Mary was giving her a nervous but still kind look.

"Sorry about that, but I just couldn't stand her staring you down like that. Hi I'm Cori, it's nice to meet you," Cori said with a kind smile to Mary, who just gave her a surprised look.

"Well it's nice to meet you too, Miss Cori, but why didn't you like Miss Charlotte watching me?" Mary asked before making Cori sit down so she could wash her arm injury before the leg.

"Because it is not right that you have to serve her, you're your own person. Does she hurt you or any of the others?" Cori asked seriously. She could not stand the idea of having another person be a slave. Everybody has a right to be treated as a person, and it is terrible that the laws of this time do not agree.

"No Miss Cori, we're lucky here with Miss Charlotte. Now quit worrying and take off them pants so we can clean your leg wound," Mary said quickly and Cori wanted to laugh at the woman's attitude. She made Cori think of her grandma. "You are as slow as the children are when I get them ready," she continued while Cori took off her boots and then her pants.

Cori grimaced at the blood that was soaked into her pants, and her left leg was now a brownish color on the thigh from the blood. Mary untied the bandage and made a noise with her tongue at the sight of the injury from the bullet. Cori quickly grabbed the rag with water from the basin before Mary could. Cori appreciated the help, but she was not too comfortable with the idea of anybody bathing her legs.

"I'll find you a dress after you clean that up and wrap it again," Mary said and Cori nodded while still cleaning.

Cori wanted to run and hide at the mention of the dress, but she knew when to keep her complaints in her head. She was not going to be rude in this situation. She would just have to learn to deal with the dresses of this era. However, she was not going to wear heels. She was wearing her boots or going barefoot, no exceptions.


	4. Chapter 4

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, and their grandparents.

Story Start

The dress turned out to be a light grey color with dark blue stitched vines around the bodice and bottom of the skirt. It was beautiful, but the corset underneath the dress was something that Cori wanted to rip into shreds and burn. Breathing was no longer an easy past time with this monstrosity around her.

"Oh that fits you so well," Charlotte said when Cori entered the dining area where Charlotte and all of the children from earlier were sitting. Samuel gave her a small tentative smile while his siblings stared at her curiously.

"Thanks again for helping me," Cori said taking a seat at the table by a young girl holding a doll.

"I'm sorry for throwing rocks at you," Samuel quickly piped into the conversation.

"It's fine, I would have done the same thing if I was you," Cori said assuring the boy that all was forgiven.

"Aunt Charlotte, when will father be here? You said he might come here soon," one of the children questioned with a sad frown on her face.

"He'll be here soon, don't worry Margaret," Charlotte answered her niece before a look of surprise crossed her face. "Oh dear, we haven't introduced everybody," she said to Cori, who just gave a shrug. "This is Margaret and her younger sister is Susan, and the boys are Nathan, Samuel, and William," she introduced the children, who gave nods or small smiles. However, the young girl Susan just clung tighter to the doll in her arms.

"Nice to meet all of you, I'm Cori," Cori introduced herself to be polite. "So is your father fighting in the war?" she asked wondering if it would be all right for conversation. By the deathly quiet atmosphere, she wished she had kept her mouth shut. "Sorry, forget I asked that," she started to apologize, but Samuel cut her off.

"My dad is a rebel and he's fighting against the redcoats. He'll defeat all of them," the young boy said confidently as a fire entered his eyes.

"What side are you on in this war?" Nathan asked staring down Cori with a serious look.

"Neutral, I don't like fights," Cori answered with a shrug before shivering from the once again tense atmosphere.

"Redcoats won't take that for an answer," Nathan snapped back before a look from his aunt silenced him.

"I can leave if there is a problem. I've appreciated all of the hospitality, but I do not want to cause any problems," Cori said about to stand up from the table. The evening light shone through the window on her face. She flinched a bit from the fading sunlight before the night took its rightful place in the sky.

"Nonsense, you are no burden, sit, eat," Charlotte said rising from her chair as well. The woman seemed as if she had not had any good company for too long. Cori slowly sat down and Charlotte gave a sigh of relief taking her seat as well. "Now boys, this is the dinner table, how many times must I remind you about manners?" the woman continued giving the boys a little scolding.

"We're sorry, Aunt Charlotte," the boys said softly before the meal began.

Cori still felt a bit awkward sitting at the table with so many strangers, but she would not be rude. She ate her meal, but she kept her eyes on the window. The sun slowly set and the sky darkened. The beautiful mix of orange, pink, and some purple filled the sky before the night swept it away. She was not even aware that the meal was over until somebody gently touched her shoulder.

"Dinner is over, time to rest," Charlotte said softly as the moonlight from the window made her blonde curls glow.

"Sorry," Cori whispered noticing that all of the children were missing from the room, probably already in their beds and sleep clothes. She stood from her seat giving a sheepish grin to Charlotte before the woman motioned her towards the room from earlier. Cori was about to follow the woman to the room, but a loud knock at a door made her jump.

"Wait here, quiet," Charlotte said before rushing towards the front window near the door. A gasp left the woman as she spotted British soldiers standing in front of her house. "Quick, get the children, we must leave,' the woman whispered as loud as she dared to Cori and the servant, who had stepped beside Cori moments ago.

The servant rushed off and so did Cori. The servant woke the girls while Cori ended up in the boys' room. She woke all of them and surprisingly none of them freaked out when she told them to meet their Aunt downstairs as fast as they could. She followed after them to make sure none of the children fell and hurt themselves since some were still half asleep. Their aunt was already outside in the backyard with some of the girls motioning for everyone else to join her in the forest.

The boys and the servant rushed to the woman, but Cori kept feeling that something was wrong. She scanned the girls by Charlotte before noticing the youngest girl was not there. She raced back upstairs and found Susan sleeping in her bed. She had the pillows and covers bunched around her, so she blended in as if she were not there.

Cori scooped the young girl into her arms, which caused Susan to stir awake frightened a bit. "It's ok, I'll get you to your aunt," she whispered to the young girl as they reached the bottom floor of the house. A few bangs on the door made her freeze. She had to think fast, but some of her time was taken from her when a few soldiers stormed into the house. She had just enough time to dive under the dining table with the girl still in her arms.

Susan was shaking with fear as she clutched the doll in her arms as tight as she could. Cori tried to give the young girl a comforting smile, but the child looked ready to cry. Cori wiped away some of the tears before hugging the child close so she could whisper, "Stay quiet and do no move unless I tell you to, I will get you out of this safely." Susan stared up at her worried before giving a shaky nod.

Leather boots stomped quickly through the house as the yells of men sounded as well. "Nobody is here," "The ghost's children aren't here," "Burn the place," "Shoot anybody you find," were some of the yells that Cori and Susan heard as they stayed hidden under the table.

Cori cursed the fact that she was still in her dress and the corset. She would pay big money right now if she could wear her workout clothes. She made sure her dress was all under the table before footsteps entered the dining area. The little girl clung to her side as they watched a pair of boots attached to a soldier's feet march into the room slowly.

"Nothing in here either," the soldier growled and Cori took her chance. She knew she would not have another. She kicked her feet out and swept the man's feet out from under him. She slid out from under the table, punched the man in the face, the gut, and then she hit some of his pressure points to knock him unconscious. His fall had made a bit of a commotion, but it was a risk anyways.

"Now, run to the forest to your aunt," Cori whispered pulling Susan out from under the table and running out into the backyard with the young girl. She pushed Susan towards Charlotte and the other children. She would have joined the group, but she heard yells of being spotted so she ran in the other direction to distract the soldiers from Susan and the others.

"A woman, don't shoot, just catch her," a soldier ordered even though some bullets had already been shot. She was lucky not to be hit by them. The corset and her leg wound made running difficult, but she was not going to give up because of pain. "I said do not shoot," the soldier yelled angrily but his voice was not as loud as she ran deeper into the forest.

Branches and rocks were catching on the skirt of her dress as she ran. A curse left her a few times when her skirt also hid tree roots below her from view and she stumbled. Her ankle twisted one time during a stumble, but she kept running to the best of her ability. She was surprised none of the soldiers had caught her yet, but of course, the sounds of horses catching up to her were there instead of soldiers on foot.

"Stop running," a soldier yelled in a commanding tone, but nobody in his or her right mind is going to voluntarily stop.

"Daft woman," another soldier snapped behind her, but she just pulled up her skirt and ran faster.


	5. Chapter 5

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, and their grandparents.

Story Start

Cori's chest was killing her as she struggled for breath because of the corset. "He calls me daft, but men making women wear this stuff are the daft ones," she thought angrily as she tried to keep running. Thankfully, the forest was on her side as it slowed the horses down some. If she reached an open field like last time without a horse then she would be in serious trouble.

"Colonel," a soldier yelled in a surprised tone, as a horse broke away from the group and was running closer to Cori. She looked over to see an imposing looking man sitting atop the strong animal. His piercing blue eyes were focused solely on her and she glared at him. She would not be caught so easily after everything she has dealt with so far. She stopped running straight and ran through a tight group of trees. She was able to slip through, but low branches tore part of the skirt of the dress. She smirked, as she was able to see where she was running now with most of the skirt gone.

"How can a woman run that fast?" a soldier's voice reached her as she kept running through difficult areas for horses to follow.

"Maybe it's not a woman," another soldier remarked before cursing when he could not get his horse to follow. The other soldiers could not make their horses follow either. However, the colonel's horse had no issues with following through the dangerous area.

"You will not get away from me," the colonel's voice snapped too close for her liking, and she tried to pick up the pace. A dark chuckle left the man behind her when she noticed a ledge up ahead and another area. She had no idea if she could make the distance but she was at least going to try if she had to get away as a last option.

She was preparing herself to jump the ledge when she felt somebody tackle her to the ground. She yelled in surprise and pain as she was shoved to the ground with a warm body on top of hers. Kicking and punching she tried to break lose, but the man was too strong for her tired body.

"Enough," the colonel snapped and her eyes flew straight to stare into his icy eyes. "Are you Charlotte? Where are the ghost's children?" the man continued holding Cori's hands in his grip and keeping her down with his body weight.

"I'm Cori, and I don't know anything about a ghost having children, didn't know that was possible," she snapped trying to buck the man off her.

"Do not test me, woman. Now tell me what I want to know or you will be taken back to the fort for interrogation and it will not be pretty," the man growled bringing his face closer to hers. She had never been this close to a man before in this situation, but she would not be intimidated.

"I already told you, my name is Cori. I do not know who the ghost is, and therefore I cannot tell you where the ghost's children are," Cori growled back bringing her face closer to the colonel's face.

"Colonel, we caught the slave, she says that the woman and the ghost's children escaped towards the back road," a soldier quickly added as the rest of the colonel's company reached the pair on the ground. The soldiers were all on foot.

The colonel stared at the soldier before glaring back down at Cori almost viciously. "The slave will work for the fort and this woman will be taken for questioning by General Cornwallis," the man ordered as he stood and pulled Cori to her feet. The man still had a hold of her hands, but her legs were her true weapons. She smirked at him before bringing her right leg up quickly and kneed him in a not so nice place. She felt his grip on her hands loosen and she slammed a punch into his cheek.

"Colonel Tavington," a soldier yelled as the other soldiers stared in surprise at a woman trying to fight their colonel.

"Stay back," the colonel said with a breathless quality to his voice as he quickly stood and tried to prepare for Cori's next attack. She was smarter than that though. She grabbed a soldier by her and shoved the man towards the colonel, who dodged the confused soldier. Cori rushed towards the forest, but another soldier tackled her this time. She yelled in frustration before punching the soldier in the eye. She hoped it turned as black as coal.

"Good job, Wilson," another soldier commented before she was lifted into the soldier's arms. She struggled, but his tight grip and the corset were working against her. A furious Colonel Tavington stormed towards her and slapped her across the face.

"You will live longer if you act how a woman is supposed to act," the man had the audacity to say. Her cheek stung from the hit and she even tasted blood in her mouth. however, his words just lit a fire in her eyes.

"You need to train some more if this woman can kick your ass," Cori bit out, which would have earned her another slap, but she kicked the man in the face before he could. She was still restrained, but her flexibility allowed her to kick above her head. The colonel stumbled back and she smirked as a bruise was already blossoming on the man's chin.

"Tie the wench up," the colonel snarled and then he yelled, "And she rides with me." Cori tried to struggle free, but five soldiers took no chances as they tied her up. She felt like a cow at a rodeo. She was tossed onto a horse and the colonel jumped up behind her. She hissed, as he was quick to wrap a tight arm around her waist, tighter than necessary. His other hand grabbed the reigns.

"No woman has ever dared to do what you did," he hissed into her ear as he made the horse move back through the forest to head in the direction of the now burning house.

"I'm not like most women," she snapped while fighting to breathe because of the limited amount of room in her constricted lungs.

"You will not be punished like most women either," he snapped back and she tried to head-butt him, but he moved back.

"Colonel, we set fire to the house, but we were unable to find the ghost's children and their aunt," a soldier greeted the colonel and the rest of his men, who had reclaimed their horses.

"I can see that," the colonel said looking down his nose at the soldier, who gave a shaky nod before moving away from his commanding officer.

"So what now, Colonel?" another soldier asked riding his horse almost beside the colonel.

"We return to the fort, General Cornwallis needs to deal out the punishment for this woman. I would, but the General would strip away my title if I did what I had planned," Colonel Tavington said deviously and Cori tensed.

She turned her head to see his smug grin, which made her glare at him. "He deserves another kick in the face," she thought before staring ahead wondering what she would do as soon as she was free from her bindings.

"Yes sir," the soldier replied before the group took off with the horses running at a quick speed. Cori sat in silence as she wondered what was going to happen next when they reached the fort. She hoped that the General had more sense than his soldiers, who seemed too pleased about tackling or slapping women. She could take a hit and she has fought many guys in her day during martial arts, but this time period should not have so many men willing to hurt a woman.

"I'm definitely kicking him in the face again when I get the chance," she grumbled before the lack of air started making her vision fade in and out. She cursed aloud before falling unconscious from the adrenaline leaving her system. She felt her body slump against the man behind her before she knew no more.

"Welcome back, Colonel, what do you have there?" a new male voice questioned in a sarcastic tone as Cori felt herself waking.

She looked around curiously to see a large white house surrounded by soldiers and tents. A movement behind her reminded her about the current predicament. She looked behind her to see the colonel still sitting there with a glare on his face. She guessed that he was not too fond of the man standing in front of the horse. The other soldiers behind the colonel were dismounting their tired horses.

"I need to see General Cornwallis," Colonel Tavington replied ignoring the man's question, which seemed to annoy the new man.

Cori stayed as still as she could when Colonel Tavington dismounted the horse. She smirked and went to kick the man in the face, and she did hit her target. However, the force of her kick made her slip off the other side of the horse. She let out a loud laugh when she had hit the ground and knew she had not broken anything.


	6. Chapter 6

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, and their grandparents.

Story Start

Cori stood up as quickly as she could and the Colonel did the same on the other side of the horse. She felt like she was playing the game where a person runs around a table and tries not to get caught as she stared down the enraged Colonel.

"Why does General Cornwallis need to talk with this young woman?" the man standing at the foot of the outside house stairs asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I believe that would be obvious. She has assisted in helping hide the Ghost's children, and she has disobeyed the King's soldiers' orders," Colonel Tavington barked glaring hatefully at Cori.

"I never assisted in hiding those children. I didn't even know the children were hiding. Those people allowed me to stay with them and gave me clothes out of the kindness of their heart," Cori yelled before she and the Colonel were running around the horse.

"Once again defying a soldier of the King," Tavington yelled angrily as he almost caught part of her dress.

"Well maybe if you had treated me with respect a woman deserves then I would show you the respect a soldier deserves," Cori yelled quickly stopping, spinning around, and round-kicking the Colonel in the face. She was happy to see a dark bruise appearing on the man's face.

"Enough," the man at the stairs snapped in a commanding tone. "You will stop this nonsense now, Colonel Tavington. The girl will be brought to General Cornwallis and so will you, right this instance," the man ordered in a haughty manner with a smirk on his face.

The man walked towards Cori, who eyed him cautiously. He slowly took a knife out of his pocket and sliced the ropes around her. The ropes fell to the ground with a loud thump and she let out a sigh of relief as blood flowed normally through her arms.

"Thanks," she said warily, and the man gave her a genial smile.

"This way," he said offering her one of his arms, which she placed one of her own on top. "Do not fall behind Colonel," the man called back, and the furious grumblings of the man behind her made her tense. The man led her into the beautiful house and towards an office. An intimidating man in uniform sat behind the desk, and she received an inquisitive look from the man when she entered the office.

"What is going on?" General Cornwallis asked before noticing the condition of the young woman. The bruises on her wrists, face, and arms made him see red. "Why is this young woman hurt?" he growled moving from his desk to stand in front of Cori. She tensed when he gently laid a hand on her bruised cheek.

"Sir, we caught her hiding the children of the ghost. She ran and resisted against the King's soldiers. She also attacked an officer, other soldiers, and would not obey orders," Tavington answered confidently even though the glare he was receiving from General Cornwallis only grew worse.

"She is a young woman. There is no reason to harm her in such a way," Cornwallis snapped at Tavington before focusing back at Cori. "Did they harm you in any other way? A way that no lady should experience," the man questioned worriedly.

It took Cori a moment to figure out what he went and she immediately shook her head. "No General, he only slapped me across the face and they tied the ropes too tight around me," she explained and the man's glare softened a small amount.

"Colonel, why is your face so bruised? Did you run into any rebels at the hiding place of the ghost's children?" the General asked confused when he saw how dark one side of the man's face was becoming.

Cori smirked at the dark bruise brandishing the Colonel's haughty face. Tavington sneered at her before replying, "The so-called young lady in front of you did this to me when she tried to get away." He did not seem proud of the bruise on his face.

"No young woman's slap should do such a thing," Cornwallis said looking between the others in the room. "My dear, did you slap the colonel with a ring or something on your hand?" he questioned.

Cori scoffed at her bruise being connected to a meager slap. "I kicked him in the face multiple times, punched him in the face, and pushed him off a horse," she answered in a deadpan but yet serious tone.

"Kicked him that high, that's not possible for a young woman such as yourself," General Cornwallis said.

"It's possible," Tavington growled when the other man said, "It is possible, sir, I saw it with my own eyes."

"Could you demonstrate?" the General questioned and Cori smirked at Tavington, who glared at her.

"You will not come near me, wench," Tavington snapped.

"Colonel, you will not speak to a woman in such a way," Cornwallis yelled and Cori saw Tavington get distracted by his commanding officer.

She rushed forwards and jumped into the air before kicking Tavington under the chin. She smirked as he stumbled backwards from the kick. She crouched down and kicked his legs out from under him so he would fall to the floor, which he did. The stunned silence in the room broke as she laughed at Tavington's angry and surprised look.

"You will pay for that," Tavington growled and stood up trying to tackle her, but she dodged his attempt.

"Remarkable, I've never seen a woman fight that way, or anybody fight that way before," Cornwallis whispered as he stepped between Tavington and Cori. "Enough, you will not hurt this woman, Colonel. "My dear, what is your name?" he asked looking back at Cori.

"Cori, sir," she answered politely even though she was still alert in case Tavington tried to do anything to her.

"Cori, I have never heard a name like that for a woman," Cornwallis said before looking around the room. "Do you have anywhere to stay?" he questioned and she shook her head. "Are you against staying here in this house?" he asked and she shook her head again. She had nowhere else to go right now.

"Excellent, you shall stay here and be protected by his majesty's soldiers," Cornwallis said walking back towards his desk chair.

"General, we don't even know if she is a rebel or a loyalist," Tavington snapped drawing the glare from Cornwallis towards him.

"Colonel, she has shown no ill will towards myself, and if she was a rebel then she would be cursing towards me right now or worse. However, you treated her wrongly and she has every right to act vile towards you," General Cornwallis answered before ringing a bell.

Soon a servant entered the room. The woman kept her head down amongst the group, which made Cori annoyed. She hated seeing women act so subservient. Cornwallis ordered the servant to take Cori to a room, which is where she will be staying for who knows how long.

Nervousness entered Cori as she left the room and followed the servant to her room. The servant helped her undress, and then she was left alone to bathe. She hissed at the sight of the bruises on her body from the rope and the earlier struggles. A deep sigh left her as she wondered what her life was going to be like now that she was stuck in the past during the Revolutionary war.

She just hoped she would stay alive throughout all of this mess. "I might be able to if the Colonel doesn't kill me first," she thought as his cold eyes flashed through her mind. "I hate that he's good looking," she thought grumpily to herself before leaving the tub to redress and go to sleep. The next day would most likely be full of more of the unknown, and she would need her rest to be prepared.


	7. Chapter 7

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, Anna, and their grandparents.

Story Start

"Miss, wake up, please miss, you must wake up, the officers are waiting downstairs for breakfast, and you must join them," a worried female voice uttered close to Cori's ear as she tried to bury herself under her pillow and covers. "Miss, the General will not be pleased if you are not downstairs soon," the woman continued and Cori sat up quickly.

"General, that's right, I'm still stuck here," Cori thought noticing the high ceilings of the room, the fireplace with the slowly dying embers, and the servant woman standing beside her bed. "I'm sorry, what is going on?" she asked staring at the woman.

"Miss, the General requests your presence at the dining table. You must get there as soon as you can, hurry, I'll help you dress," the servant said quickly as she pulled the covers away from Cori.

"All right, what's your name?" Cori questioned as she stood from the bed. "I'm Cori," she introduced herself as she watched the woman grab a dark blue dress from the armoire.

"My name is Anna," the servant introduced herself in return before quickly pulling the sleep gown off Cori's body. Cori yelped before squeaking slightly at how fast Anna slipped the dress over her body and was already tying the corset strings.

"It's nice to meet you," Cori replied before almost falling onto her face when she moved to walk forwards in the dress, which was a bit too long for her.

"Wait, Miss Cori, you need the shoes to go with it before leaving your quarters," Anna fretted before slipping some black heeled ankle boots on Cori's feet.

"Thanks, which way is the dining table?" Cori questioned as she and Anna left her room.

"Down the stairs and to the right, Miss Cori, you should hear the soldiers talking," Anna said before leaving to attend to her other duties in the house.

Taking a deep breath, Cori prepared herself for what might lay ahead of her during this breakfast. She had a feeling she would see the ever so pleasant Colonel Tavington. "I'd like to kick him in the face again," she thought as she descended the staircase. The closer she got to the bottom floor, the more she heard joyous laughter of men. She stopped at the bottom of the stairs wondering if she should just make a break for it and run for as long as she could, but she had nobody else who would help her during this time. She had been lucky earlier before Colonel Tavington ruined everything.

"You'll be fine," she told herself before walking towards where the voices from echoing from in the house. She paused in the doorway as she saw at least ten men wearing bright red English uniforms sitting at the table with tea or coffee in their cups. The mix of smells made her stomach growl as she saw the assortment of food in dishes lining the table. The men were not eating, but she could tell they wished they were just as she was wishing she were eating now.

"Ah my dear, there you are. I was worried your ordeal yesterday with the Colonel and his men would make you hide from the world today," General Cornwallis said loudly as he basically announced her presence to the rest of the men in the room.

She gave a small smile to the majority of the men in the room, who were either smiling, leering, or gawking at her. She did give a nice glare to Colonel Tavington, who looked ready to bite her to death.

"General, this is the young woman who gave those injuries to Colonel Tavington?" one of the men in the room asked with an unbelieving tone.

"She is, and I warn you men that I do not doubt she would do the same to any of you that tried to harm her," Cornwallis said with a smile towards Cori, who was pondering if she should grab some bacon and run for it. "Please, Miss Cori, take a seat, we saved a seat for you down there," he continued motioning towards a seat that was only a few seats away from Tavington. She had a few men placed between her and her enemy, but she was not too excited about breakfast. The only redeeming quality was the food and tea.

"So Miss Cori, why are you here at the fort? Are you looking for a nice soldier to sweep you off your feet?" a soldier near her asked. He was a man close to or over Cornwallis's age, and he made her think of a grandfather figure almost.

"I'm here because General Cornwallis was kind enough to give me a place to stay since I have nowhere to go, and one of his Colonel's was quite rude. However, I'm not here to find a man to sweep me off my feet," she explained before taking a bite of bacon after she saw the others grabbing food.

"More like she will sweep the men off their feet, correct Colonel Tavington?" the man from last night, who had also been in the office, asked coyly.

"She may sweep you off your feet next time, General O'Hara," Tavington snapped back before the two men looked to see if their conversation affected Cori.

Cori looked away from her delicious meal to see the men staring at her. She had not been listening to a word they were saying since her stomach was demanding all of her attention. "Is there something wrong?" she questioned wondering if she could still take the option of grabbing the bacon and running.

"No, Miss Cori, nothing wrong at all," General O'Hara said cordially with a smile before glaring back at the colonel.

"Oh, I just had a wonderful idea, Miss Cori, would you like a tour of the fort and the garden?" General Cornwallis questioned with a cheerful grin as he looked at her and the rest of his men.

"That sounds nice, thank you, General," she said with a polite nod of her head even though she just wanted to devour the bacon, glorious bacon.

"Miss Cori, may I have the pleasure of escorting you around the fort and garden?" General O'Hara questioned in a dashing manner, which only made Cori blink at him.

"But General, do you not have a lovely fiancé waiting for you back in England?" Colonel Tavington asked coyly.

General O'Hara startled before looking as if he would challenge Colonel Tavington to a duel or something. The man took a calming breath before saying, "Well I do not think the lady would prefer your company over mine, after all, you were the man who harmed her," he said giving his own challenging look to Tavington.

"This lady can walk around by herself," Cori thought with a roll of her eyes as the two men continued their bickering. She stopped rolling her eyes when she saw the General giving her a confused look. She gave a polite smile before taking a sip of tea. "Get me out of this uncomfortable atmosphere," she thought annoyed as she wished she were back at the martial arts studio training. She could feel the urge to kick something or do a few training exercises or even a few flips. Her foot started tapping on the floor as she tried to think of her training in mind, effectively shutting out the world around her.

"Miss Cori, I apologize for their rude behavior," General Cornwallis said softly drawing her from her happy mental world. "Since Colonel Tavington has hurt you so, he will be the one to escort you around the garden to make up for his transgressions. Is there a problem with this order, Colonel?" he said to her and then focused his attention on a puffed up Colonel Tavington.

Tavington looked slyly at Cori, who gave him a challenging look in return, before focusing on his commanding officer. "No General, I would like to properly apologize to Miss Cori during our walk," he said before once again staring at Cori.

"I would happily just walk by myself, instead of walking around with him. We'll end up in a brawl in no time," she thought angrily even though she gave a small smile.

"That sounds lovely, Colonel Tavington, I am ready to start the tour if you are," she said excusing herself from the table and standing up slowly. She smoothed down the skirt of her dress before walking towards the front door of the house. "I really wish I was wearing pants right now," she thought as her mind flashed with all of the possibilities of her and this man fighting once again.


	8. Chapter 8

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, Anna, and their grandparents.

Story Start

All eyes were on the pair as Colonel Tavington approached Cori, who was staring him down warily. She was going to be ready for anything when dealing with this man. He held out his arm for her as any gentleman should of his time, but she really did not want to accept his arm. From the General's look, she knew she had no other option but to accept Tavington's arm. She glared at him when he gripped her arm tighter than necessary to his side.

"Shall we?" Tavington questioned with a smirk on his face as he led Cori out of the house and into the happenings of the fort. Men were being held in a large cage of logs, and they were giving her a curious glance. She paid them not much attention since she noticed the Colonel leading her towards some of the soldiers' tents. Unease rose in her until he turned to lead her towards a garden. She listened as he explained some of the proceedings for the soldiers and how the fort is run, but she knew he was not telling her important information. She was still not trusted in his eyes, but neither was he in hers.

"How are you enjoying the fort so far?" Tavington asked as he looked down at her and he tightened his hold on her arm.

"It is a beautiful place, if you can get over the sight of latrines, men in a log cage, and the tight force being applied to my arm," Cori said and snapped the last part before kicking the man in the shin. She smiled when he loosened his hold on her arm so she could slip free. General Cornwallis was not watching her every move at the moment so why endure the Colonel's attitude any longer.

"You still cannot act as a proper lady," Tavington snarled after he finished rubbing his shin.

"What do you consider proper? I have not met any of the ladies that spend time with the men here at this fort willingly, but I do not think they will fit my definition of proper," Cori said as she walked away from the man to view some flowers. She was still alert to his move even if she was not staring at him. Her eyes needed a break from the insufferable man.

"What ladies are you thinking of? A young pure woman such as yourself should not know anything about indecent ladies," Tavington said with a sly look to challenge her.

"Neither should you know about indecent ladies if you were a proper gentleman, but wait, you're not a proper gentleman," she snapped in return giving him her own challenging smirk. She laughed a little at his outraged expression. She could have sworn his eyelids were twitching with his anger. "No need to shout at me for what you've done to yourself," she said before pulling up her skirt and running out of the garden towards the main area of the fort.

She smiled when she saw that the Colonel did not follow her. She knew he would try to get her back, but she would be cautious of him. The leers from a few of the soldiers made her quickly release her skirts and smooth them down. She did not need any more male enemies at this patriarchal fort. The hotheaded Colonel was enough of an issue.

The soldiers looked away from her when she gave them a small glare. She did not appreciate the extra looks, especially not when she needed to work on an escape plan. Her drama with the Colonel would only continue, and not in a good or friendly way. She took her time exploring the main area of the fort, but she stayed away from the tents. A prank in the Colonel's tent would be fantastic, but she did not want to risk getting in a huge fight with the other soldiers. She had no idea how the General would deal with her causing so much trouble with his soldiers.

She was slowly walking by the large cage of men, who were most likely rebels when everything grew tense. She stepped closer to the cage when Tavington appeared with some of his men on their horses. He gave her a glare before leaving the fort with his men. Aggravation hit her when she saw that soldiers had to use a mechanism to move the large doors of the fort. "Escaping will be much harder now," she thought before kicking an innocent rock with her boot.

"Grab her and we can use her to get us out of here," a man's gruff voice said from within the cage close to her.

"Or we will all be shot dead for trying to harm her," an older man's voice said in a chastising tone.

"I'll take that chance," the earlier man said before Cori sensed a hand coming close to her hair.

She spun around and grabbed the man's hand. He gave her a shocked look at how fast she moved. She gave his wrist a twist in an unnatural way, and he gnashed his teeth not to make any noise or curse. She moved her face close to the cage when she saw that all of the men were looking at her in surprise. "Next time don't say your plan where I can hear you," she said softly before releasing his hand and moving away from the cage.

Her grumbling stomach told her that it was now nearing lunchtime. She hoped that the meal would not be as awkward as breakfast had been. At least she would not have to deal with a certain man during the meal. Some of the soldiers from breakfast were missing as well when she entered the dining room. General Cornwallis gave her a kind smile and inquired about her tour around the fort and the gardens. He was pleased with her responses, and she felt some of her tension ease. Thankfully, the man did not know of her transgression with Tavington yet.

An escape plan was still forming in her mind even after lunch, which had been delicious. She was not sure when the next time the fort doors would open, but she knew they would open when Tavington and his men returned. The open fields around the fort made her even more nervous, but the forest at one edge of the field gave her hope. "I just need a horse," she thought while standing on the front porch of the house staring at the surroundings. She had nothing else to do in the home.

Anna had been kind enough to mention needlepoint, but she would be bleeding all over the floor before ever creating anything nice. Anna had once again shown her the library, which was nice, but she was too antsy to sit and read. Her chance to escape could come at any time and she was not going to miss it.

The day was leading towards afternoon and dinner when a new visitor entered the fort along with two beautiful dogs. She was given a quick glance and smile from the man with dark brown hair and curious blue eyes. She nodded her head to him before seeing that the fort doors were left open. Her heart jumped in her throat as she thought now was her chance. She walked towards a soldier, who was just sliding off the saddle.

A few flirts and subtle hand touches, and she was soon on the saddle alone. The soldier was giving instructions, but she had ridden a horse before. Her heart was beating out of control when she saw her clear shot out of the fort. She would deal with whatever repercussions she might have to face as long as she could escape from Tavington's clutches.

With a quick flick of the horse's reigns, the horse started walking around the soldier, which is what the soldier had instructed her to do nervously. He was worried about getting in trouble with the General, which she knew he would, but not for his reasons of thinking. When the horse had walked a little, she immediately gave a small kick to the horse's side to get it to start running towards the open gate.

Shocked and worried yells left the soldier, and some of the other soldiers tried to yell for her to stop as if the horse was out of control. She knew what she was doing. Freedom was singing in her veins as she crossed the open gate and into the field. Cries still resounded behind her, but she only had eyes and ears for the forest before her.

She smirked as the horse ran into the woods with ease. The trees were not too close to bother the animal. Adrenaline rushed through her as she thought she was not going to be followed. Her sense of freedom was hindered a small bit when she saw a group of redcoats returning to the fort. She knew the soldiers would immediately inform General Cornwallis about her disappearance on a crazy horse, or at least she hoped the soldiers would not see it as an escape attempt.

With another small kick to the horse's side, she rushed deeper into the forest. Hope was her only ally as she rushed past trees and jumped over showing roots. The thought of those chilling grey eyes kept her looking ahead of her.


	9. Chapter 9

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, Anna, and their grandparents.

Story Start

The horse was running as fast as it could, but she still felt nervous that Colonel Tavington would appear behind her like an ominous shadow ready to take away her soul. He might actually kill her this time and her soul truly would be gone from this world. Images of her grandparents and her brother flashed through her mind as she gripped the reigns tighter in her hand.

Yells from soldiers sounded behind her along with the sound of horses chasing her. Dread filled her but she would not give up the chase just because of the soldiers trying to stop her out of control horse, or so they thought. She urged the horse to go a little faster, but the animal could not force itself anymore. She just prayed that the horse kept up this pace as long as it could.

"Miss Cori, hang on, we'll save you as soon as we can," a soldier shouted still veiled by the trees behind her.

"I don't need to be saved," she thought with a scowl on her face before she knew her options were beginning to slim. The soldiers' horses were not as tired as her horse was, and she knew they would eventually catch her. She could jump off the horse and try to escape by foot, but her last attempt was not too great for her. She could just jump onto a tree limb and hang there until the soldiers found her so she could act like the scared young woman who had just been on an out of control horse. Her options were becoming slimmer as the sound of the soldiers drew nearer.

"Time to put on my acting skills again," she thought and waited until she was close to a tree limb, which hung low enough for her to jump up and catch it. The horse ran forward as if she had not left its saddle as she hung with a scared expression on her face. The soldiers arrived in her line of sight soon enough and she quickly cried out for one of them to help her after she saw that the Colonel was not amongst them.

"Miss Cori, are you all right? Are you injured?" the soldier, who helped her down from the tree branch and onto the saddle of the horse he was riding, asked.

"I'm fine, just shaken," she whispered as she kept up her act and clung to his waist because she was sitting behind him. She was lucky that this group of soldiers was not the group that tracked her down from Charlotte's house the other night.

"We need to get her back to the fort, General Cornwallis will worry," another soldier said as the group turned their horses around to face the direction of the fort. A few soldiers from the group left to go find the runaway horse.

Cori felt her hope slip away as she was taken back to the fort. She was surprised to see the men from the log cage being released, and they were leaving with the man from earlier with the dogs. He gave her another smile and nod of his head before he and the men disappeared. Of course, the next person she saw was the dear sweet annoying and aggravating Colonel Tavington, who immediately eyed her with suspicion.

"Taking a ride with his majesty's soldiers?" Tavington asked with an underlying tone of assumption.

"No sir, she was riding a horse here in the fort until it lost control and took her through the forest. We tracked her down and thankfully the beast had not hurt her," the soldier, who she was riding the horse with, informed his commanding officer.

"I see, are you feeling ill Miss Cori?" he questioned her when he approached the horse to help her down.

"No Colonel, just shaken," she said trying to keep up the act even though she wanted to punch him again in the face or in the throat for the assumption he was making of her character.

"I hope the soldiers were kind to you," he whispered in her ear as he helped her down and kept his hands on her waist. She looked out of the corner of her eye to see him smirking at her.

She was seething inside as she stomped down on his shoe as hard as she could in her heels. A slight hiss from him made her smirk as she leaned towards him to whisper in his ear. "If you want me to stop hurting you and taking away your pride, then maybe you should quit questioning my status as a maiden," she whispered with an undertone that promised pain worse than she has dealt him before.

"Miss Cori, we should get you inside where you can rest and recover from your traumatic experience," a soldier said in a comforting voice as she moved away from a glaring Colonel.

"Yes, you're right, a rest sounds nice," she said as she took the offered arm by the soldier, and the two walked towards the house in the fort.

"Miss Cori," Colonel Tavington's shout made the pair stop even though Cori wanted to rush into the house for some time to think of another escape plan.

"I apologize for my actions. Would you grace me with your presence during the ball tonight in the gardens?" Tavington said in a more courteous tone as he approached Cori and the soldier.

She eyed him with suspicion now even though he kept up a cordial facial expression. He was waiting still for her answer as she looked around her, and she saw most of the men in the fort eyeing the two of them. It seemed as if everybody was waiting for her answer to the Colonel's question.

"Well since you are the first to ask me to the ball, then yes, I will go to the ball with you," she said loud enough for the other people in the fort to hear her. However, she moved closer to Tavington to tell him something else. "But do not think that all is forgiven, you did slap me, tackle me, and assume I was a whore," she hissed in his ear and she went to move away, but he put a hand on her waist with a tight hold.

"And don't forget that you have kicked, punched, and humiliated me in front of my commanding officer," he whispered in her own ear before moving back. "I will see you at the ball," he said in a more cordial tone before walking towards some of his men.

"I want to find the most pointed heels or boots I can find," she thought as the soldier led her into the house and up the stairs. Anna was at the door of her room waiting for her to enter her quarters. She dismissed the soldier with a thank you and a small curtsey. He left and soon Anna was already fussing over her about the ball. She was not excited about the ball because she knew she was going to deal with many materialistic and political women at this party. Materialism and politics are not topics she enjoys discussing.

Dancing or even talking with the Colonel would test her nerves with the man, but she was going to act civil until he stopped acting civil to her. She would then drag him deeper into the garden and finally have the fight she has been wanting to have with him. A few hours passed as Anna made her take a small nap, bathe, eat dinner, and get ready for the ball. The entire time she would have rather just read a book or slept the whole time. However, she was quickly learning that there was no arguing with Anna.

The time of the ball was now upon the fort. Anna had dressed her in a cream colored gown with gold colored embellishments. Gold leaves and vines were stitched on the skirt and bodice of the dress. The corset was not too tight, but tight enough to show off her form. She was not the most womanly form because of all of her training, but she did have some curves. Heels matching her dress were slipped on her feet. The pain would soon reach her soles and she was not happy about the footwear. She would kick them off as soon as she could whether the Colonel or anybody else liked it or not. If her feet were hurting, then she would not force herself to deal with the pain long.

Anna led her out of the room and she was told to wait at the top of the staircase. Anna hid by the wall so she could watch the Colonel retrieve Cori, even though Cori wanted just to walk down by herself. Anna had once again been insistent, and Cori waited only because she could see the excitement on Anna's face. She was becoming a friend to Cori in this time, and Cori wanted to be a good friend in return.

"My dear, you look beautiful, Colonel Tavington is a lucky man," the grandfatherly soldier from the breakfast the other day told her from the bottom of the staircase.

"Thank you, sir," she said and gave a small curtsey. When she rose, she saw that now Colonel Tavington was standing at the bottom of the staircase.

"Be good to this one, Colonel," the old soldier said giving Tavington a pat on the shoulder before he went outside of the house to go to the garden.


	10. Chapter 10

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, Anna, and their grandparents.

Story Start

"You look lovely," Tavington said as he gave a bow before walking up the staircase.

"Thank you, you look nice," she said politely even though she still watched him with suspicious eyes. She would not doubt the man would push her down the stairs if he got a chance.

After reaching the top of the staircase, he held out his hand to her, which she took. She was surprised that he was actually being a gentleman so far tonight as he walked with her down the stairs and to the garden. She received either appreciative stares or spiteful glares from the crowd filling the garden. General Cornwallis was talking with some of his men and a few of the older women at the ball. He smiled when he saw her on Colonel Tavington's arm.

"My dear, you look beautiful tonight. Colonel Tavington, I'm quite jealous that I did not get the chance to ask for her to accompany me to the ball before you did," Cornwallis said as he grabbed Cori's hand and placed a kiss on her knuckles.

"Well with a woman such as this, one must be quick on their feet," Tavington said as he wrapped an arm around Cori's waist and pulled her closer.

"Or they'll be swept off their feet," Cori thought even though she just gave a polite smile before looking around at the party. She could see a large ship off in the distance of the river, which she had briefly seen the other day.

"Well it is just surprising that she even agreed to be here with you, but maybe she will be good for you. Now then, let the dancing begin. You may have the first dance with her, but I hope you will let me have at least one dance with the beautiful lady," General Cornwallis said before moving to the dancing area with one of the women.

"Shall we dance?" Tavington asked Cori after his commanding officer had left the two of them alone with the group.

"Sure, but I don't promise that I know all of the dances," she said giving him a fair warning that she was not a dancer.

"No worries, I'm an expert at leading," he said as he pulled her towards the dance floor. He looked proud with her on his arm, which was surprising to her after the way the two of them fought all of the time since they had met.

The music was beautiful, and the scenery of the garden around them was breathtaking in the candlelight and starlight. Surprisingly, the Colonel was a good dancer, and he helped her dance well. She had tried to take dance lessons, but they never went anywhere. She danced a few times with the Colonel before General Cornwallis stole her from Tavington. She had actually laughed at the small frown on the Colonel's face. She hated to say it, but so far, she was having a nice night with the Colonel. He had actually even talked to her civilly and politely. She may have stepped on his toes a few times when he started getting rude in some way, but he stopped talking about the subjects when the pain reached his toes.

After the Colonel had taken her back to dance for a bit longer, the two of them were now drinking some champagne or wine with some other couples. Cori felt a bit awkward since all of the women were being courted or engaged. She was neither. However, she was polite, and the women were kind to her.

Her mind was still spinning in circles at the fact that dare she say it; Colonel Tavington had actually started being nice and slightly flirtatious. He had even played with her hair a bit while they were dancing. She knew she should not be affected by any of that, but he was a good looking and smart man. They had a bad start because he believed her to be a criminal. She could change her opinion on him if he changed his opinion about her. After all, she did get more kicks and hits on him then he ever did on her.

"So this has been an interesting night, Colonel," she commented as the two of them stood close to a candelabra.

"How so, Miss Cori?" he questioned over the top of his champagne glass.

"Well for starters we have not physically fought each other tonight," she said with a shrug as she looked out at the ship resting in the river.

"I noticed, my face thanks you," he said with a smirk as he moved closer to her. "But I wonder, did you really lose control of the horse or were you trying to escape?" he whispered close to her ear so others would interpret it as flirting.

"The horse lost control. I have not ridden a horse much in my life, so I was unable to properly lead the animal," she said calmly before backing away to face the Colonel. "I enjoy how you still treat me as a criminal even though I have never been a criminal," she said raising an eyebrow at him.

"I still enjoy you treating me as a vile man," he said with a glare now as he thought she was challenging him again.

"I treated you like a judgmental man, which you have been to me so far. Why don't you treat me with a fresh start, instead of still keeping this mindset of me being a rebel woman?" she suggested before taking a sip of the champagne in her glass. She was still drinking out of this first glass, while most of the other guests had had more than two or three glasses.

Tavington was frozen with surprise at her suggestion. She looked around at the other party guests as she let him have time to think about what she said. She really did want to escape, but where would she go? She hated to say it, but she might actually be safer here in this fort then out on the road where bandits or rebel soldiers may be hiding. She was happy that America became a country of its own, but not all of the rebel soldiers are honorable men to random women walking alone.

"Will you extend the same courtesy to me if I rid myself of all my opinions of you that have already formed?" he questioned quietly but calmly as he eyed her critically.

She took her time considering the question as well, but mainly to see how the Colonel would react. She was not disappointed as he took some more sips from his drink before he just stared at her. With a sly smile, she tapped her chin before saying, "I will, just promise not to tackle or slap me again, and I won't kick you in the face," she said holding out her hand to seal the deal that they would start fresh. She had always heard to keep your enemies closer, but if she could help it, she would make this enemy at least a friendly acquaintance.

"It is a deal," he said this time with his own sly smirk before gently grabbing her hand and kissing the top of it.

"Well then, my name is Cori, nice to meet you, Colonel," she said with a small curtsey.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Cori, but please call me William," he said as his eyes glowed mischievously in the candlelight.

She was going to say something to him, but a large explosion from the river stopped her and the rest of the people at the ball. The noise made her jump closer to Tavington, who wrapped an arm around her waist out of reflex. Most of the people at the party were shocked or frightened. However, the man standing next to her looked ready to murder somebody.

"The Ghost," he growled as his hand tightened on her waist.

"Who knew Casper's ancestors were so destructive?" she thought to herself to calm down after the shock of the explosion.

"Get back to your room, do not leave the fort for any reason," he growled in her ear before he rushed towards General Cornwallis.

"Well at least I don't have to deal with the awkwardness of telling my so-called date good night," she thought as she made her way back into the house and upstairs. The sight waiting for her upstairs was an anxious Anna. "Calm down, we'll be all right," she said to Anna trying to assure her friend that they were safe for now.

"Miss Cori, it was just too close, much too close," Anna said with tremors of terror running through her. Cori quickly pulled her friend into a tight hug, and after a while, Anna's tremors subsided. "Now let's get you ready for bed, you need your rest if you're going to be hanging around Colonel Tavington willingly," she said as she moved Cori towards the changing area of the room.

"I think you have that backwards, that man needs to rest if he wants to deal with me," Cori said with a laugh as she changed into her nightgown and slipped into the bed.

"Just be careful, Miss Cori," Anna whispered before leaving the room and shutting the door.


	11. Chapter 11

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, Anna, and their grandparents.

Story Start

The days passed with a different tune for Cori than the first few days she was at the fort. Tavington had been busier than she had seen him be before her arrival. However, he had been more courteous to her ever since they agreed to start new at the ball. She still did not fully understand why she did that, but he interested her more than a man ever has.

He was also the only person to challenge her and be able to keep up with her wit and sarcasm. He made her laugh even if she wanted to kick his feet out from under him many times. She could tell that she was also the first woman ever to act this way towards him, and she thought that maybe he truly enjoyed her company as well.

They had also been flirting more than she would have ever expected. It was mostly sarcastic in tone, but she could feel that it was sincere from both herself and maybe him. Her heart would start to beat faster in a good way instead of in a fighting way every time she was near him now, which was not much thanks to the ghost, the battles, and special missions. However, he always made an effort to come see her, whether he was telling her not to escape or get into fights. She knew he was seeing her just in case he could not come back.

The last time he had come to see her before a mission; she almost fell back or punched him in shock. He had asked for permission to court her. When he saw her frozen expression of shock, he had turned away with a sneer saying that he was a fool. He had taken steps away from her before she could get rid of her shock. However, now that she had been shocked, it was his turn to receive a shock. She would kick herself later for her rash action, but she was caught up in this strange time of living in the past with actual gentleman.

She ran after him, grabbed his arm, spun him around, slammed him against a wall, and she kissed him. His eyes widened as their lips locked. She watched him warily as she kissed an unresponsive man. When she was about to pull away, he locked his arms around her waist and kissed her back with a fiery passion that she only believed to be in romance novels.

As the kiss calmed down, he moved back but still kept her in his arms. "So you accept my courting?" he asked keeping a keen eye on her every reaction.

"I wouldn't have kissed you if I didn't," she said with a sly smile. His smirk and the resumed kiss was her acceptance of her answer. The kiss was more than she ever expected, but her embarrassment almost killed her later because of Anna's teasing, and General Cornwallis's congratulations.

A bored sigh left her as she stared out the front windows of the house from the reading room. William had been gone from the fort on a mission for a few weeks now, and she was worried for him. She had asked him to write her letters, but he was not the kind of man to keep in touch with written word during war, his words, not hers.

Her dreams of him being shot, killed, and tortured by rebels were not helping her rest at night. Dark circles were under her eyes even though Anna insisted she try to sleep all the time, but that would only make the circles worse because of the nightmares.

A commotion broke her away from her thoughts and nightmares. The Green Dragoons were returning to the fort. Her heart soared at the knowledge that Tavington would be returning, but her heart sunk at the sight of William holding his chest.

She kicked off her heels and rushed outside. Soldiers were shouting orders for a medic or stuff for the wounded soldiers. Her eyes were only on Tavington, who was sliding down from the saddle and stumbling back against the horse with the hand still to his chest. She pushed soldiers out of her way until she was right in front of an exhausted and wounded Colonel.

"William," she whispered placing a hand on his face. His fever sung loud and clear, as the heat raced through her hand.

"Cori," he whispered in pain with a growl in his tone.

"Hang on," she said wrapping an arm around his waist even though he tried to protest. "Stubborn man," she grumbled before leading him to the doctor set aside for the officers. "He's been shot in the chest, the bullet needs to be removed now, and he has a fever," she barked out orders as soon as she was inside the medical tent.

"Miss Cori, you shouldn't be in here, we're indecent," a soldier lying on one of the cots yelled in surprise as he pulled a blanket over his chest and underwear.

"I wouldn't care if you were naked, William's life is in danger right now," she snapped as she and the doctor helped William lie down on one of the cots. As soon as his back was on the cot, she was pushed to the side gently so the doctor could work. She stood to the side to stay with William. She would not leave his side no matter what anybody said to her. She was finally beginning to like the man, and now he might be taken away from her.

Her nerves were going crazy as she waited with anxious breath for the doctors to finish taking out the bullet, sewing up the wound, and getting down William's fever. She was happy to help replace the cold compress, which was placed on William's forehead. The doctors were trying to let somebody else wipe down William's chest to help get rid of the fever, but she was already there so she was fine with doing that. She had already seen many guys shirtless because of her martial arts background.

Hours passed before William's fever finally disappeared. She was almost about to fall asleep because of how long she had stayed away in an anxious state. The normal temperature hand gently running through her hair made her jump up from where she had been laying her head on the cot about the fall asleep.

"Cori," William said with a small smile before pulling her into a kiss. His dark brown hair was loose from its usual ponytail as he gave her a welcome back kiss. She enjoyed the kiss but at the same time, she wanted to hit him for almost dying.

"You're lucky I like you so much," she grumbled as the kiss ended and she removed the cold compress.

"I'm lucky you're stubborn. I heard you fight with the doctors at every minute," he said with a smirk.

"You better be happy I did. They don't particularly like you. They didn't even want to keep getting cold water for your fever to go down. I made the trip every thirty minutes," she said with a small glare remembering how lazy the doctors had acted when they realized it was Colonel Tavington. "Jerks," she grumbled before smiling down at the stubborn man she liked. "So now that you're back, you're going to get a bit of rest before going back out there to fight some more," she said in a matter of fact tone, which quickly ended in an argument.

"I have to fight in the battle that is going to take place in a few days. I'm a soldier, a colonel, I'm not allowed rest," he growled and she just stuffed the cold compress in his mouth.

"Well while you're here at this fort, before the battle, you are going to rest, even if I have to tie you down to my bed," she growled getting in his face and happily keeping the compress in his mouth. He raised an eyebrow at her mention of tying him to her bed. She glared at him before laughing at the mental image and innuendo. "I didn't mean it like that and you know it," she said before moving away from him.

"Well I still would like to see you trying to tie me up at all," he said after spitting out the compress and wrapping an arm gently around her waist as he pulled her down to lie beside him. He knew it was not exactly proper, but at this moment, he could care less, and she was not showing any dislike.

"Don't tempt me," she gave a small growl before laughing. She was happy he was back. She had missed the stubborn fool, but she was being honest about tying him up to at least a chair or a bookshelf if he would not at least try to rest.


	12. Chapter 12

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, Anna, and their grandparents.

Story Start

The next few days were happy yet tense for Cori and William. She knew he had to still go to the big battle, which was going to take place soon, but she did not want him to go. His injury was healing more from his stubbornness than actual rest. However, he was not his usual 100% fighting capacity.

General Cornwallis expected Colonel Tavington to be on the field during the battle, but he was going to get an extra surprise. Cori was going to be going to that battle as well. She only had William for her truly in this time and she was not going to lose him. If she had to lose him, then she would be fighting to avenge his death.

The day of the battle was finally here, and William was saying what he thought was his final farewell to Cori. She was standing on the porch of the house in a beautiful red dress. Small tears were trying to escape her eyes, but she held them back. Crying would not help her when she was on the battlefield later. William gave her a gentle kiss on the lips before kissing her forehead.

"Stay here and be safe. I will return to you," he said staring her straight in the eyes. He seemed to freeze in thought before whispering, "I love you."

"I love you too," she said before kissing him.

"Colonel, we should be going," one of the soldiers of the Green Dragoons said from beside a horse.

"Stay here," William ordered before walking towards his own horse to join the other soldiers.

"Not a chance," Cori thought while she waved goodbye to the soldiers and her love. She rushed into the house as soon as they were gone. She and Anna had snuck away one of the soldier's uniforms a few nights ago, and she was about to put it to use.

Anna was waiting for her anxiously in the bedroom. The uniform was ready on the bed for her as well as some boots, which were close to her size. Anna was fretting the entire time as she helped Cori get dressed. "Please, Miss Cori, don't do this, don't get yourself killed," Anna whispered as tears slid down her cheeks.

"I'll be fine, just stay here and wish me luck," Cori said after the uniform was on her. she pulled Anna into a big hug before whispering, "You are the best friend a girl can have, and I will never forget you." Cori pulled away from the hug and fixed her hair as a man would before running out of the house.

She found a horse, jumped onto the saddle, and made her way as quick as she could to the battlefield. Her nerves were on fire as she wondered what she was getting herself into, but she just had the feeling that she had to be at the battlefield. Sounds of gunfire, cannon balls striking the ground, and cries of dying soldiers met her ears as she reached the edge of the battlefield. She ducked down as a bullet whizzed past her shoulder.

Her eyes scanned the field looking for Tavington. She saw the Green Dragoons split up amongst the fighting British soldiers and rebel soldiers. Her heart was hammering in her chest as she tried finding the only man she wanted to love or hit at the same time. A breath escaped her when she saw Tavington making his way through the soldiers, cutting down any of the rebels that he saw.

His bloodthirsty eyes were not something she had seen before, but they would not deter her. She knew he had this in him, but this was her first time seeing him like this. She rushed her horse forward towards the chaos of the fight when she saw the man, who had visited the fort to free the rebels, charging towards Tavington on foot with a small ax in his hand.

"The ghost," she thought when she saw rage cloud Tavington's eyes. A bullet grazed her arm as she was rushing towards Tavington and the ghost. She would run the man over with the horse if she had to because she just knew within her soul that this man would kill William. She just knew it would happen.

"No," her cry of terror seemed to echo within her when the man ran the blade at the end of his gun into Tavington's gut. "Move," she screamed angrily as she kicked a rebel soldier in the face because he tried to shoot her off the horse. She rode the horse deeper into the chaos before jumping off the horse beside Tavington and the ghost.

The ghost was surprised at her appearance and went to attack her before he took another look at her. "You shouldn't be here, this is no place for a woman," he yelled at her, but she only had ears for the dying man in front of her.

She glared evilly at the ghost as she kneeled down beside William, who was looking at her with anger and worry. "Don't tell me where I should be," she hissed at the ghost before grabbing Tavington's hands in her own because he had been reaching for her. "You should have never come to this battle," she yelled at William as the tears finally started to escape her.

"Neither should you," he growled before pulling her down for a kiss. She felt her heart breaking as she pulled back to see her tears drop onto his paling cheeks.

"I couldn't let you come out here alone, not even to die out here alone," she cried before sensing the ghost walking up behind her. She kept her eyes on William, whose life was slipping out of his form as she sat there.

"You must leave, you will be shot as a soldier with no regret," the ghost told her as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"It doesn't matter, I'm not supposed to be here anyways, but since I am, I'm not leaving him," she said with a shiver in her voice as William's eyes closed and his hands slid out of hers. "I just lost my real reason of being here," she said before placing his hands over his no longer beating heart.

"You must leave," the ghost said softly trying to pull her up from her spot on the ground, but a fire was lit within her veins. She jumped up and punched him in the face. He stumbled back in surprise from the hit before seeing the hatred in her eyes. Her fists were clenched in front of her, as she was ready to fight.

"Just go home, get out of here safely," the ghost said wondering if he should help her or keep fighting. The call that the French were arriving made the decision for him as he ran away from the crazy woman.

Cori's body was on automatic as she fought any rebel by hand who tried to approach the body of William. She would protect his body as long as she could. Even if she died doing so, which at this point she knew she would. She had fought so many rebels already, but it was never one at a time. she had been stabbed, cut, and shot multiple times as she shakily stood by William's body. The soldiers were never ending, but her body did have an end, and she was reaching it.

An attack of coughs shook her frame before she spit up blood. The soldiers glared at her, which the British soldiers were retreating because of the approach of the French. Nobody was going to help her protect a dead man, but that was fine with her. She would soon be dead as well, and she would not die anywhere but here.

The gunshot echoed in her mind as the bullet raced through her right lung. Gasping breaths full of pain was all she heard amongst the noise of the battlefield. Her dizzy eyes fell down to the image of a peaceful William. She wanted to join his peace. Her knees gave out as she stumbled towards William. Shaky hands pulled her the rest of the way towards the only man, who she had loved.

All noise left her as she placed a hand on top of William's cold hands. Her head rested on his shoulder as her body relaxed beside his. A strong wind blew past their forms as her last breath left her, and her body became still.


	13. Chapter 13

I do not own the Patriot. I only own Cori, Brandon, Anna, and their grandparents.

Story Start

"Grandpa, I found her," Brandon's young voice reached her senses as she felt cold grass poking into her skin. "Cori, why are you sleeping on the grass? I'm hungry, it's time to get dinner," her younger brother whined as more sets of footsteps approached her.

"What?" she thought in shock as she shot up from the ground. She quickly scanned her surroundings in fear and confusion. All she saw was her brother, her grandparents, and an empty dark field. She thought would hyperventilate at the fact that she was not dead on a battlefield with Tavington. She was back in her clothes from the day of the tour as well. Her brother and grandparents were also in their tour clothes, which just made her head hurt. "It couldn't have been a dream, it was too real," she whispered before she felt her brother grab her hand with a worried look.

"Are you all right?" Brandon asked softly as he started pulling his sister towards the car.

"I think, yeah, sorry, let's go get dinner," Cori whispered trying to give her best comforting smile, but she was still lost with what was actually going on around her. Her family was acting as if she had just been sleeping for a little bit of time, but she had been missing for days in the past.

The rest of the ride back home from their vacation was when Cori took the time to process everything that had happened to her. She still felt as if her heart had been torn out after witnessing Tavington's death, but she knew for sure that it had all happened. She had new scars on her body from where she had been shot and stabbed during her stay in the past. Hopefully, nobody would see or inquire about her scars, but they were living proof that she had been back in time during the days of the Revolutionary War.

A surprise was waiting in their neighborhood when they returned from their vacation. A new neighbor had moved into the house across the street from her. After they all unpacked the car, her grandmother made some brownies, which she would make Cori take with her to the new neighbor. Her grandmother was big on welcoming people to the neighborhood.

Cori really just wanted a nap of all naps after car was unpacked, but she was always the neighbor greeter with her grandmother. Brandon would have been, but he always tried to eat all of the baked goods.

Her grandmother knocked on the door a few times before taking the tray of brownies away from Cori. They waited on the doorstep a few seconds before a boy around Cori's age opened the door. Cori was thankful her grandmother had the brownies because she would have dropped them at the sight of the man.

"Hi, I'm Will, nice to meet you," the guy said as his grey eyes shone in the sunlight at her grandmother and then focused on Cori.

"Hi, I'm Cori, and this is my grandmother," Cori said softly as her eyes were still entranced by his. His dark hair and smirk were enough to make her faint at the realization that this person might be William's reincarnation.

"Well, welcome to the neighborhood, and enjoy the brownies, but I need to go unpack some more. Cori, why don't you stay and talk more with Will?" her grandmother said while happily walking away. She always loved playing matchmaker for her granddaughter.

"These smell great, thanks for making them and bringing them over here," Will said to break the ice between them.

"You're welcome," Cori said with a smile and a shrug. She had to shake her thoughts of Tavington from her mind, but the guy in front of her looked like him so much it was scary.

"I know this may sound weird, but you look really familiar, have we met before?" Will asked after a moment.

"Who knows? Maybe we knew each other well in the past," Cori said as her heart was threatening to jump out of her chest.

"Well then I think we should get to know each other in this time too, would you like to go out to eat with me tomorrow and maybe a movie?" he asked tilting his head to the side with a small smirk.

"I would like that," Cori said before she heard her name being called from her house. She gave Will a smile and wave goodbye, and then she went home. "I would like that a lot," she thought thankful that maybe her love from the past could continue into the future.

The End


End file.
